11, 14-peroxides of substituted ergostadiene compounds



11,14-PEROXIDES OF SUBSTITUTED ERGOSTADIENE COMPOUNDS Gerald D. Laubach, Jackson Heights, N. Y., assignor to Chas. Pfizer & Co., Inc., Brooklyn, .N. Y., a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application March 17, 1954 4 Serial No. 416,936

2 Claims. 01. zen-239,55

This invention relates to the preparation of certain novel steroid intermediates useful in'the artificial syn' thesis of therapeutic agents naturally derived from the adrenal cortex and like animal glands and tissues.

The present application is a continuation-in-part-of application Serial Number 224,676, filed on May 4, 1951, by Gerald D. Laubach, and now abandoned.

Several of the steroid-type constituents and derivatives of the adrenal cortex have been shown to be of considerable importance in the control of physiological functions and in the therapy of certain diseases. It is highly important that synthesis of such compounds from cheap, 'readily available materials be developed, since the supply of natural precursors, e. g. extracts of animal glands, is definitely limited. The most difficult problem in such a synthesis is to introduce oxygen at the eleventh carbon position of the usual cyclic steroid nucleus. It is generally recognized that the presence of oxygen at this exact position is essential for the high biological activity of such naturally derived compounds as cortisone and compound 'F. A number of different methods have been proposed for this oxygenintroduction. These have been briefly reviewed by Kendall in the Annals of the New York Academy of Science, vol. 50, pp. 541-542 (1949). Many involve a number of steps and the overall yields are relatively low. Other methods have been proposed that require the use of corrosive or highly toxic chemicals, and in many cases purification of the productsmay be ditficult. Furthermore, the best of these methods are not readily applicable to those steroids which are most widely available, such as the vegetable steroids. I

A particular object of this invention is to rearrange the internal molecular structure of certain poly-unsaturated cyclic steroids, which are easily and. cheaply obtained from vegetable sources, and to efiect the ready and con venient introduction of oxygen at the eleventh carbon atom of the steroid nucleus.

This and other objects are realized by the present invention which broadly comprises photoperoxidizing a cyclic steroid compound containing conjugated double bonds at the 9(11),8(14) positions. The new process is particularly successful, for instance, with 6,9 (11),8(14),- triene steroids, i. e. those containing the radical 2,877,221 V Patented Mar. 10,195?

such as isodehydroergosterol I 7 I I V -7;:

and its esters and ethers. Compounds of this type are described in copending application, Serial No. 222,946,

filed April 25, 1951, by Laubach et a1. and now abandoned, and in a continuation-in-part thereof, Serial No. 416,935, filed March 17, l9,54,.now PatentNo. 2,333,527 issued June 10, 1958. They" are generally prepared by isomerization of 5,7,9(11)-triene ster'oids; lj

Photoperoxidation of the 9(11),8(1 4)-double' bonded steroids yields novel products wherein'a peroxide bridge extends between the C and C positions; Such. products thus contain the radical, f,

g on} H: l

Similarly, photoperoxidation of the 6,9(11),8(14)-triene steroids results in new compositions containing the radical AcO olvacetate 11,14peroxide.' It, has thetolldwing 'tormulaz a rfmm The physicalproperties of this unusual new compound are as follows:

-M. P. 164.6-166.4 C.;

A max. 272 m (log e=3.6l) (ether);

Analysis.Calcd. for G l-1 C, 76.88; H, 9.46.

Found: C, 77.03; H, 9.50.

reaction is as follows:

0H. CH5

0 OCH: 0 0 0 H:

CHI

'novel product has the following physical constants: M. P. 147.2-148.6-C.;

1212:336 stai s-716 (C 13)- The peroxide compounds thus obtained may be converted directly to the corresponding ll-keto steroid compounds by the relatively simple procedure described in copending application Serial No. 368,199, filed on July 15, 1953, by Gerald D. Laubach et al., now Patent No. 2,773,885 issued Dec. 11, 1956. This procedure comprises contacting theperoxide with alkali. The result is illustrated by the following equation:

CH: CH:

This same application alsodescribes a process for removal of the l4-OH group :by acid dehydration, as follows:

CH CH1 'Componnds-of-thetype obtained by this reaction may then be subjected to selective hydrogenation according to the process described in application Serial No. 317,576, filed on: October 29, 1952, by Gerald D. Laubach et 211., now Patent No. 2,740,797, issued April 3, 1956. This processinvolves;;contacting the steroid with hydrogen in the presenceof ZW-7 Raney nickel and an alkaline material. B-ythis method both the 6 and 14 double bonds may be saturated,- while neither the double bond at the 8 position, nor double bonds which may be present in a side chain such as that:of.the ergosterol .4 derivatives, are changed. The following equation illustrates this:

obtain therapeutically valuable cortisone and like intermediates. The new substances contain oxygen at the C position so crucial for high biological activity.

The preferred method of photoperoxidation to obtain this addition .of oxygen at C-l1 of the steroid nucleus is by dissolving the chosen steroid in an organic solvent system and contacting the resulting solution with oxy en. The oxygen may be used in the pure state or as it is found in air, or it may be diluted with inert gases. Essentially any known organic solvent which will dissolve the steroid and yet not itself react with the constituents of the reaction system may be utilized. Aromatic hydrocarbons like benzene, toluene, xylene, and so forth; aliphatic .or cycloaliphatic hydrocarbons like hexane, low or moder vate boiling petroleum fractions, and cyclohexane;.or lower alcohols such as ethanol are commercially most desirable, although the lower alcohols have the disadvantage of generally dissolving .only a rather limited amount of the steroid.

The oxygen treatment of this steroid solution is effected in the presence of an oxidation activator and of light. As the illumination, which is essential for catalyzing the oxidation, sunlight or any artificial source of light which gives approximately the same wavelengths, e. g. incandescent light or a carbon arc, may be used. The dye known as .eosin or dyes of related structure are quite suitable to activate the oxygen-addition. Such activators and their function are well known and various alternative materials will readily occur to those skilled in this art. vA very small amount of such a compound, say in the orderof 0.001% (based on the weight of s e o d), is u ed in comm r ial p rat on, but a o siderably lower proportion will serve. This substance may easily be removed from the peroxide product.

In conducting the reaction, the temperature rises more or less rapidly depending upon the rate of aeration, the design of the equipment and so forth. It is .best not to let the temperature rise above about 60 C. The reaction proceeds fairly rapidly, generally being completed in less than about ten hours and sometimes in less than onehour. The-rate, of course, depends to a certain extent upon the type of apparatus, the reactants, the temperature and other factors. Although the steroid molecule may continue to adsorb oxygen after the C-11 addition is completed,-the rate is definitely slower; hence by following the course of oxygen absorption, the reaction may be stopped at the proper point. In a convenient form of apparatus for this reaction, a flask sealed from the atmosphere is attached to a manometer and to a reservoir of air or oxygen so that, while the mixture is agitated, the absorption of the oxygen by the reaction mixture may be observed.

After completion of the reaction, the product may be recovered by any desired means. The solvent is ,usually removed by distillation and the dry residue washed free of eosin or other activator with a solvent like methanol. The product is then recrystallized, such as from a chloroform-methanol mixture according to conventional practice. A yield of at least about 50 percent of quite pure crystalline product is thus obtained. If material of extremely high purity is desired, it may be recovered, for instance, by chromatography of the crystalline material in petroleum ether on alumina. After development of the column with petroleum ether, gradually increasing amounts of benzene are added to portions of the ether and the product is finally removed from the column by means of benzene. Crystals of the desired peroxide of high purity are then obtained by concentrating the benzene eluate.

Isolated double bonds not within the cyclic structure, side chains and other 'substituents 'of the" particular steroid generally have no deleterious eifect on oxygenaddition. Thus, the side chains attached to the isodehydroergosterol-type steroid nucleus at the l7-position or the 3-position may be considerably varied without interfering with the reaction. Rather than the unsaturated aliphatic side. chain at C,l7,'a"compound may be utilized having a carboxyl, an acetyl, a COCH OH group or esters and ethers thereof, a spiroketal group or simply an oxygen (i. e. the l7-keto compound) or the like attached at that point. The group at the 3- position may be OH, or an ether or ester group, instead of simply the acetyl group previously mentioned. In a like manner, when the group at the l7-position is a side chain having OH, e. g. COCH OH, either the free OH or an ester or ether thereof may be employed. On'either a side chain OH or the OH atthe 3 position, useful ester groups include, for example, formate, propionate and benzoate, and useful ether groups include methyl, ethyl and benzyl. Isodehydroergosterol may readily be prepared from its esters by hydrolysis and then photoperoxidized. However, the isodehydroergosteryl esters are preferred by reason of avaliability, cost, ease of commercial operation and value of the isomeric products.

The following examples are given by way of illustration and are not intended as a limitation of this invention. Indeed, as many apparently widely difierent embodiments of the present invention may be made without departing from the spirit and scope hereof; it is to be understood that the invention is limited as defined in the appended claims only.

Example I A solution of 1.8 grams (0.0041 mole) of ergosta- 6,8(l4),9(11),22-tetraen-3/3-yl acetate ([oz] =-74.5) in 1.5 liters of ethanol containing 0.010 gram of eosin was irradiated with a 200 watt incandescent bulb for eight hours. The solution was maintained at 3035 C. by cooling. A vigorous stream of oxygen Was passed through the solution during the course of the irradiation. The reaction mixture was then concentrated under vacuum to a mass of colorless platlets, from which most of the eosin dye was removed by trituration with cold methanol. The peroxide product was obtained as a slightly pink solid, melting point l52l54 C. The yield was 0.890 gram (46%). A portion of this material (0.435 g.) was chromatographed over alumina (activated at 500-600 C.) in a column with a diameter of 18 mm. After elution of the more soluble contaminants with a 1:8 benzene petroleum ether mixture, the desired product was recovered by elution with 1:4 then 1:2 benzenepetroleum ether washes and finally with benzene alone. The combined fractions contained the peroxide product in the amount of 0.247 gram. Two standard recrystallizations from methanol yielded analytically pure isodehydroergosteryl acetate peroxide as colorless platelets, melting point 164.6l66.4 C.

. v Example ll A'solution of 0.874 gram "(0.002 mole) of ergosta- 6,8( l4),9( 1 l ,22-tetraen-3fl-yl acetate ([a] =-'78 in 10 ml. of anhydrous benzene was mixed with 5 ml. of ethanol containing-0.050. gram eosin. The mixture was stirred in a closed system under a positive oxygen pressure of l'atmosphere." 'The reaction vessel was illuminated with a 5005waitt,f120 volt floodlamp and cooled in a bath maintained at 7.5-9.5 C. After 60 minutes one mole of "oxygen had been adsorbed and the rate of oxygen'uptake, as observedon the manometer of the apparatus, decreased sharply. After removal of some precipitated eosin, the reaction mixture was concentrated under vacuum to a partially crystalline mass, which on trituration with 20 ml. of cold 80% methanol yielded the desired peroxide as. colorless platelets. This product weighed 0.820 gram, indicating a yield of 87.5%. It was chromatographed over 24 grams of alumina (activated at 500-600 C.) in a 25 mm. column and impurities were removed as before with petroleum ether, 8:1 petroleum ether-benzene mixture, and benzene alone. The resulting purified isodehydroergosteryl acetate peroxide weighed 0.380 gram, being recovered in a yield of-4l.5%.

The equation for the reaction in this example and in Example I, is as follows:

AcO .AcO

'Example III The procedure of Example II was repeated, using various ester and ether groups in the 3 position instead of the acetate group present in Example II. Useful groups include, for example, formate, propionate and benzoate among the esters, and methyl, ethyl and benzyl among the ethers. The reaction was also carried out with the 3-OH group unprotected. None of these changes in the group at the 3 position had any efiect on the overall reaction, and peroxide formation took place in exactly the same manner as before.

Example IV The procedure of Example II was repeated, using A -allopregnatrien-3}3-ol-20-one-acetate as the starting steroid. Peroxide formation took place as previously described, and the product was A -allopregnadien- 3p-ol-20-one-acetate 11,14-peroxide. The equation for this reaction is as follows:

CH: CH;

C O CH: O O CH: C 0 Ha I Example V The procedure of Example IV was repeated, using various ester and ether groups in the 3 position instead of the acetate group present in Example IV. Useful groups include, for example, formate,propionate and benzoate among the esters, and methyl, ethyl and benzyl among the ethers. The reaction was also carried out with v7 8 the 3-OH group unprotected. None of these changes in 'henzyl among the ethers. The reaction was also "carried the group at the 3 position had any efiect on the overall out with the 3 and 21-OH groups unprotected. None of reaction, and peroxide formation took place in exactly these changes in the groups at the 3 and 21 positions had any effect on the overall reaction, and peroxide formation took place in exactlythe same manner as before. Example VI I claim.

The procedure of Example II was repeated using A Steroid compound having the formula A kallopregnatrien-BQZI-diol-ZO-one diacetate as the starting steroid. Peroxide formation took place as CH CH3 previously described, and the product was A -allopreg- 10 CH nadien.-3,B,21-diol-20-one diacetate 11,14 peroxide. The equation for this reaction is as follows:

CH3 .COCHaOAc the same manner as before.

CH3 CH3 where R is selected from the class consisting of OH, and formate, acetate, propionate and benzoate ester groups. 2. A compound according toclaim 1 wherein R is the acetoxy group.

r iocmoac References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,312,344 Logemann Mar. 2, 1943 2,329,979 Butz Sept. 21, 1943 2,647,867 Schaltegger Aug. 4, 1953 2,665,245 Schaltegger Jan. 5, 1954 Mo 2,773,885 Laubach et al Dec. 11, 1956 OTHER REFERENCES Example VIII G. D. Laubach, E. C. Schreiber, E. J. Agnello, E. N.

The procedure of Example VI was repeated using Lightfoot, and K. J Brunings: J. Am. Chem. Soc., vol. 75, various ester and ether groups in the 3 and 21 positions: pages 1514-1515, March 20, 1953. instead of the acetate groups present in Example VI. Fieser: Natural Products Related to Phenanthrene, Useful groups include, for example, formate, propionate pages 164-5 (1949). and benzoate among the esters, and methyl, ethyl and Hirschmann: J. Org. Chem. 4, pages 29-39 (1939). 

1. A STEROID COMPOUND HAVING THE FORMULA 